City of Yemen Fights to Revive Itself after the Defeat of Al Qaeda

December 4, 2018

In the purplish blue waters off Yemen, newly created coastguards attacked a fishing boat during a mock exercise as a part of the war-hurt city’s attempt to revive state institutions, two years after the expulsion of the Al Qaeda.

The country which has been torn by conflict, the former Al Qaeda stronghold of Mukalla sticks out as an oasis of stability, offering a blueprint of post-war Yemen. During a ceremony, dozens of Yemeni officers took charge of the 350km coast of southern Hadramawt province.

The transfer in Mukalla included management of local ports, with a Saudi-led military coalition surrendering maritime equipment and surveillance boats to the new coastguard who have been trained by the officials of America, Saudi, and Emirati.

The US ambassador to Yemen, Matthew Tueller stated that the genuine answer to the humanitarian crisis in Yemen is to achieve an end to the conflict so that the institutions of the state can be restored.

The United States who considers Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) as the most deadly franchise was driven out from Mukalla in April 2016. Everlasting stability based on reconstruction and development; however, Yemen dizzy from an economic meltdown headed by a crumbling Yemeni currency making many out of work and some can’t afford basic food staples. Badar Basalmah, a resident and former transport minister stated that people are stressing on survival with low salaries and high inflation. He added that in Mukalla, services are not worthy while the security is good. Still, the AQA sleeper cells crouch in the city; however, Hadramawt governor Faraj Al Bahsano stated that they won’t pose a serious threat.

Officials stated that the conditions which helped the Al Qaeds to take over the poverty-stricken city still exist. Neighborhood still carries the scar of war like bombed houses; obless people are high; in spite Hadramawt being oil-rich, Mukalla is impaired by power outrages and fuel shortages. The peace in Mukalla is fragile and the local government is working hard to pay wages and is depending heavily on the UAE and Saudi Arabia for financial support.